At the ETUG conference this month, I attended a presentation by Alisa Stanton, Rosie Dahaliwal, and David Zandvliet (SFU) called “Creating Conditions for Well-Being in Learning Environments.”
I practiced visual note-taking during the talk, with the results below. In essence, the talk was about how instructors can get students to feel connected and at ease in the classroom environment. Because studies have found a very strong correlation between students’ levels of stress and their grades, health in the classroom environment is vital for students’ success. What I took away from this talk was that health in the classroom comes down to three essential parts:
- sharing
- understanding diversity
- being heard/sense of empowerment
Health and Counseling Services at SFU also has a diagram that highlights their 10 conditions for well-being in learning environments, available as a PDF here. This document includes some simple tips for instructors on how to create these conditions within the classroom.
The talk was informative and important, as mental and physical well-being are the foundations for all learning!
